Radio Frequency for Consumer Electronics (RF4CE)

Hillcrest Labs and Texas Instruments unveiled some of the first remote controls to utilize the new "Radio Frequency for Consumer Electronics" (RF4CE) standard at CES. By combining Hillcrest's Freespace® technology and Texas Instruments' RemoTI™ network protocol, the companies have demonstrated how consumer electronic companies can create pointer-based remote controls for various A/V devices such as televisions or DVD players. Together, these technologies eliminate the line-of-site limitations of infrared (IR) devices and dramatically reduce the number of buttons needed on a remote control.

Wireless and Powerline Controls Market to exceed $3 billion in revenues by 2012

New applications and consumer demand will push installed base to 60 million in 2012 --

Consumer demand for intelligent control applications will push U.S. revenues for wireless and powerline controls from $740 million in 2008 to over $3 billion in 2012, according to Opportunities for Wireless & Powerline Controls.

This new report forecasts the installed base for these technologies will skyrocket to nearly 60 million in 2012, thanks in large part to key players entering this market. Companies including Black & Decker, Schlage, Hawking, iControl, and Wayne Dalton have all announced new products targeting access control, remote monitoring, and energy management applications.

Zilog recently announced a new control platform incorporating both wired and wireless connectivity interfaces that provides consumers with remote access and control through WiFi-enabled handheld devices, including the Apple® iPhone™ and the BlackBerry® Curve™.

The report finds entertainment controls, including advanced universal remote controllers, will drive growth in wireless controls. Lighting applications will drive the opportunities for powerline controls.

Mid-level Aftermarket Entertainment Remotes Continue to Gain Market Share

U.S. households are increasingly looking to the remote control as their link to easing the complexity of control and search among the growing number of disparate systems in their homes, according to Aftermarket Entertainment: Universal Remote Controllers (Second Edition).

This new report from Parks Associates confirms and expands upon the trends identified in the 2006 first edition. These include the increasing desire and willingness of U.S. households to replace current remote controls with one that is more capable and can enhance their experiences with new entertainment systems.

The report provides purchase process details for aftermarket remotes, brand shares among U.S. Internet households, unit numbers and revenues for high-end remotes sold by dealers installing entertainment systems, and forecasts by product segment from 2007-2012. In addition, the report offers a segmentation of URC owners and recent buyers along with their ratings about key features important to their ultimate buying decisions.

The report also details continuing inhibitors and explores a few key strategies to increase consumer awareness and the willingness of TV manufacturers to offer different levels of remotes at the point of purchase.

Full Release available: http://newsroom.parksassociates.com/article_display.cfm?instance_code=parksassociates&article_id=5085